Abilities
There are three main types of abilities: Activated, Triggered, and Static. Examples of Static abilities include shroud, first strike, and flying. Activated abilities include any abilities that require tapping or some sort of cost. For example, the card Royal Assassin has an activated ability that reads: "Tap: destroy target tapped creature." Triggered abilities require a specific event to happen, like paying upkeep. Evergreen Keywords These abilities are used in most sets and thus are the core abilities the game is built around. Deathtouch Deathtouch is a static ability that means any amount of damage dealt by a source with deathtouch is enough to kill the creature receiving the damage. Defender Defender is a static ability that means the affected permanent cannot attack. It is commonly found on creatures with low power, and high toughness, such as most walls. Double Strike A creature with double strike deals damage during the first combat damage step alongside creatures with first strike, then additionally deal damage during the second damage step along with regular creatures. Enchant Enchant {object or player} is a static ability found on auras which defines what they can enchant. The keyword is written with a quality after it (e.g. Enchant creature) which defines what a the aura can enchant. Equip Equip is an activated ability found on equipments. By paying an equip cost, you can attach the artifact to a creature you control. Equipping can only be used at sorcery speed. First Strike First strike is a static ability that creates an additional combat damage step. A creature with first strike will deal its combat damage before a creature that doesn't. Flash Flash is a static ability that allows the affected card to be cast at any time you could cast an instant. Flying A creature with flying cannot be blocked except by other creatures with either flying or reach. Creatures with flying can block other creatures with or without flying. Haste Haste is a static ability that allows creatures to ignore the rules informally known as "summoning sickness". This means that they can attack, and activate tap or untap abilities on the same turn they enter the battlefield. Hexproof Hexproof is a static ability that means that the affected permanent can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control, but can still be target by spells or abilities you control. Indestructible Indestructible is a keyword ability that means that any permanent that has indestructible cannot be destroyed, and cannot die as a result of lethal damage. Intimidate Intimidate is a static ability which restricts the types of creatures that can block a creature with intimidate. A creature with intimidate can't be blocked, except by artifact creatures and by creatures that share a color with it. Landwalk Landwalk is a static ability that means the affected creature cannot be blocked as long as the defending player controls a land of the specified type. Lifelink Lifelink is a static ability that modifies the result of combat damage. When a creature with lifelink deals combat damage, the controller of that creature also gains an amount of life equal to the amount of damage dealt , in addition to dealing the damage as normal. Protection Protection is a static ability which means that the affected permanent has limited protection from effects of a stated quality. Reach Reach is a static ability that means the affected creature can block creatures with flying. Shroud Shroud is a static ability that means the affected permanent or player cannot be the target of any spells or abilities. Trample Trample is a static ability that allows creatures to deal the rest of the damage not taken by target creature(s) blocking does that much damage to the defending player. Vigilance Vigilance is a static ability that means the affected creature does not need to tap when attacking. Other Keywords Banding Banding is a legacy ability once considered part of the main game, but is no longer supported. Rampage Rampage is a triggered ability that increases the affected creature's power and toughness by a set amount for each creature blocking it beyond the first. ''Main article: ''Rampage Cumulative Upkeep Cumulative upkeep is a triggered ability that imposes an increasing cost to keep a permanent. Flanking Flanking is a triggered ability that means when a creature without flanking blocks a creature with flanking, the blocking creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn. Phasing Phasing is Phasing. Buyback Buyback is a static ability that appears on some instant and sorcery cards that allows you to return the card to your hand when it resolves. Shadow Shadow is a static ability that means the the affected creature can only block, or be blocked by other creatures with shadow. Cycling Cycling is an activated ability that means you can discard a card from your hand to draw a card. Typecyling Typecycling is an activated ability that means you can discard a card from your hand to search your deck for a card of a specific type. Echo Echo is a triggered ability that requires the affected permanent's controller to pay its echo cost at the beginning of that player's next upkeep. Category:Abilities